Wallichia oblongifolia
| Wallichia (wahl-lik-EE-ah) oblongifolia (ohb-lohn-jih-foh-LEE-ah) | |||||||
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Contents
Habitat and Distribution
Assam, China South-Central, East Himalaya, Myanmar, Nepal, and West Himalaya.
Wallichia oblongifolia is found in North India, Himalayas. Found in humid forests in China, Yunnan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Tripura, and Uttar Pradesh (Gharwal Himalaya) where it grows up to elevations of 1600 m.
Description
Hight, up to 18 feet tall (6 m). Spread, to 12 ft. Clustering and acaulescent. Flower stalk coming from among the leaves. Leaves are dark green, and arching, are bright silvery-white underneath and divided into fishtail-like leaflets. Fruit, 0.5 inch in diameter (1.2 cm) ovoid, seed round. Editing by edric.
Small, clustering palm, in dense clumps, 2-3 m (6.5-10 ft) tall, usually with very short trunks. with dark green, arching fronds, which are bright silvery-white underneath and are divided into fishtail-like leaflets.
Stems clustered, short and subterranean or to 1 m tall, to 40 cm in diam. Leaves spirally arranged; petioles to 2 m; rachis 1.5-2.5 m; pinnae 16 or 17 per side of rachis, ± oblong, with several lobes, regularly and alternately arranged, spreading in same plane, proximal 2 or 3 pinnae in a cluster, smallest erect; middle pinnae 45-56 × 7-12 cm, widest near apex. Inflorescences unisexual, male and female borne on separate stems; male inflorescences pendulous, not seen in their entirety; rachillae many, at least to 12 cm; male flowers 7-10 mm; stamens 6; female inflorescences to 1 m, horizontally spreading; rachillae 16-32, to 35 cm; female flowers to 6 mm. Fruits greenish brown to reddish, ovoid to ellipsoid, to 1.5 × 0.8 cm. (efloras.org) Editing by edric.
Culture
Min. Temperature: 25°F (-4°C). Water Requirements: Abundant water. Sun Requirements: Light shade to shade. Germination: difficult and irregular. Warm, sheltered, and moist. Tolerant of light frost. Cold Hardiness Zone: 9b
Comments and Curiosities
Leaves: The leaves are spirally arranged or distichous, pinnate and induplicat. The leaf sheath often extends beyond the petiole and so forms a ligule. Over time it breaks down to black fibers. The petiole is well developed. The leaflets are simply folded and linear-lanceolate. They are irregularly rhombic or deeply lobed, sometimes auriculate at the base. The upper leaf surface is glabrous, the lower surface densely covered with hairs and dandruff.
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Inflorescences: The inflorescences are between the leaves (interfoliär) and always individually. They break through the leaf sheaths and develop in a basipetal order. They are branched once, and usually unisexual different: the female the distal or "terminal" standing, the male proximal that are often obscured by striking bracts. The peduncle is usually hairy, brown and scaly. There are several bracts on the peduncle, which are arranged spirally. They are usually densely covered with brown scales and hairs. The inflorescence axis is usually longer than the inflorescence stalk. The bracts are very small. The axis bears numerous flower-bearing lateral axes (Rachillae), which are more slender and densely hairy. Enter in a spiral arrangement small bracts, in whose armpits are the flowers. Flowers: The male flowers are in pairs or individually. Sometimes they are accompanied by a rudiment of a female flower. The chalice with three lobes or teeth. The receptaculum is between cup and crown and extended stalk-like. The crown overhangs the cup clearly. It is röhrig at the base and has three long tail. There are 3-15 stamens present. The stamens are joined at the base. They are also partially or completely with the corolla tube, sometimes even with a part of the tip. The anthers are straight. A stamp rudiment missing. The pollen is ellipsoidal and bisymmetrical. The germ is opening a distal sulcus. The longest axis measures 24 to 27 microns. The female inflorescences are usually upright and carry less, but more powerful Rachillae. The flowers are individually in a spiral arrangement. Each stands in the axil of a leaf high and is surrounded by three Brakteolen. The three sepals are low, rounded and imbricat. They are free or connate at most in the lowest range. The three petals are fused to about half, the free parts are valvat. There are 0-3 staminodes present. The ovary is spherical and two to dreifächrig with one ovule per subject. The scar is apical and conical. The ovules are hemianatrop. Fruits and seeds: The fruit is ellipsoid, and small reddish or purple color. It contains one or two, rarely three seeds. The scar remains are apically. The exocarp is smooth, the mesocarp is fleshy and filled with acicular crystals irritating. A endocarp is not differentiated. The seeds are basal. They are ellipsoidal or hemispherical. The endosperm is homogeneous. The embryo sits sideways. (From the German) This is a hapaxanthic (monocarpic is for annuals & biennials) genus. "It is a great shade garden palm for So Cal, for those gardens with ample room. W densiflora is a suckering palm with a very short trunk (mostly subterranean) but with long leaves (up to 8' or more) and lime green, fish-tail shape leaflets along the petioles. The underside of the leaflets has a mild white tomentum. It is a reliable grower if given enough water (hard to overwater this one) and pretty cold tolerant (probably down to about 25F). It's pretty slow, so if you start out with a dinky seedling, it will be dinky for many years. This is a native of the lower Himalayan mountains." (Geoff Stein) This wonderful rare dwarf palm from the humid forests of the Himalayas, where it grows up to an altitude of at least 1600 m (5200 ft), deserves to be much more widely grown. Its elegantly arching fronds are dark green above and bright silvery white below, and the leaflets resemble a fishtail. Although slow at the beginning, it speeds up considerably with age and develops into neat clusters to about 2 m tall. It is best grown in shade and suitable for subtropical and temperate climates. It will take prolonged cool weather and can tolerate moderate frosts without damage. W. densiflora also does perfectly as a house or conservatory plant and will look good even under less than optimum conditions. (RPS.com)
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- IMAGE GALLERY
Hawaii. Photo by Timothy Brian
Hawaii. Photo by Timothy Brian
Hawaii. Photo by Timothy Brian
Photo-Gardenology.org
Photo by deezpalms
Photo by Paul Craft
Female flowers. Photo by Paul Craft
Male spathe. Photo by Paul Craft
Male inflorescence. Photo by Paul Craft
Female inflorescence. Photo by Paul Craft
Photo by Paul Craft
La Habra, California. Photo by Dave B.
Photo-trebrown.com
Photo by Mike Gray.
Photo by Mike Gray.
Wallichia densiflora inflorescence.
Vero Beach, Fl.
Hawaii. Photo by BGL.
Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney Australia.
Photo by Carlo Morici.
Hawaii. Photo by BGL.
St. Pete FL. Photo by Mike Evans.
St. Pete FL. Photo by Mike Evans.
Flower bracts. St. Pete FL. Photo by Mike Evans.
Flower bract. St. Pete FL. Photo by Mike Evans.
St. Pete FL. Photo by Mike Evans.
Los Altos, California. Photo by Jim Denz.
Flower bract. H.P. Leu Gardens, Orlando FL. Photo by Botonist, Eric S.
Flower bract. H.P. Leu Gardens, Orlando FL. Photo by Botonist, Eric S.
H.P. Leu Gardens, Orlando FL. Photo by Botonist, Eric S.
Photo by Geoff Stein.
California. Photo by Geoff Stein.
Los Angeles CA. Photo by Geoff Stein.
Photo by Geoff Stein.
Photo by Geoff Stein.
Photo by Geoff Stei.
Hawaii. Photo by Geoff Stein.
Hawaii. Photo by Geoff Stein.
Hawaii. Photo by Geoff Stein.
Floribunda Nursery, Hawaii. Photo by Geoff Stein.
Photo by Geoff Stein.
Mt Warning Caldera Nth NSW Australia. Photo by Pete.
Mt Warning Caldera Nth NSW Australia. Photo by Pete.
Mt Warning Caldera Nth NSW Australia. Photo by Pete.
Mt Warning Caldera Nth NSW Australia. Photo by Pete.
Mt Warning Caldera Nth NSW Australia. Photo by Pete.
Mt Warning Caldera Nth NSW Australia. Photo by Pete.
McCarty Hall Palm Garden at University of Florida, University Heights, south Gainesville, FL. Photo by Kyle Wicomb.
McCarty Hall Palm Garden at University of Florida, University Heights, south Gainesville, FL. Photo by Kyle Wicomb.
Cooper City, FL. Photo by Kyle Wicomb.
Cooper City, FL. Photo by Kyle Wicomb.
2015. Kyle Wicomb's palms at McCarty Hall, the University of Florida in Gainesville, FL. In ground 2007. Photo by Kyle Wicomb.
Photo-viverolaconcha.com
Photo by Gilio Giacomozzi.
Photo by Gilio Giacomozzi.
Author: Natalie W. Uhl
Photo-Rare Palm Seeds.com
Photo-Rare Palm Seeds.com
Photo by Strontiumbaer.
External Links
- Glossary of Palm Terms
- MODERN BOTANICAL LATIN
- "Just To Be Clear"
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WE-IXZ30YVo
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThBFKrgE6ao
References
Phonetic spelling of Latin names by edric.
Special thanks to Geoff Stein, (Palmbob) for his hundreds of photos.
Special thanks to Palmweb.org, Dr. John Dransfield, Dr. Bill Baker & team, for their volumes of information and photos.
Glossary of Palm Terms; Based on the glossary in Dransfield, J., N.W. Uhl, C.B. Asmussen-Lange, W.J. Baker, M.M. Harley & C.E. Lewis. 2008. Genera Palmarum - Evolution and Classification of the Palms. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. All images copyright of the artists and photographers (see images for credits).
Many Special Thanks to Ed Vaile for his long hours of tireless editing and numerous contributions.
